Bettye LaVette

The Great Lady of Soul

June 3, 2017, 10:30 PM
FirstWorks Plaza Stage, Downtown Providence

“Ms. LaVette… rivals Aretha Franklin as her generation’s most vital soul singer.”
–New York Times

Bettye LaVette is a true legend of blues and soul, with a career spanning more than 50 years. She exploded out of Detroit at 16 years old with her first top 10 R&B hit, but it’s only within the last decade that she has truly earned recognition as one of America’s finest vocal talents. Huffington Post dubbed her “the High Priestess of R&B.” Her powerful voice is frequently called upon to heighten the drama of important moments, as when she sang Sam Cooke’s A Change is Gonna Come with Jon Bon Jovi at Obama’s second inauguration in 2009 or brought down the house with her rendition of Love Reign O’er Me at the Kennedy Center Honors’ tribute to The Who. Her most recent album, Worthy (2015), earned her a Grammy nomination for Best Blues Album and the award for Soul Blues Female Artist at the 2016 Blues Music Awards.